Is there a future for family farming in West Africa?

Family farming is key to the incomes, livelihoods, export earnings and food supplies of West Africa. Over the last 40 years, smallholder production has provided the lion's share of growth in farm output, and kept pace with increased demand in most countries. But smallholders face a challenging future as local markets and food systems become increasingly globalised. Returns to farming are threatened by cheap imports of food, falling world market prices and difficulties in accessing credit and inputs. Government strategies to "modernise" agriculture provide preferential treatment to large-scale producers, and fail to recognise the dynamism of family farms, which are often portrayed as backward and subsistence-oriented. But this view is based on a highly selective interpretation of available evidence, which ignores the strong commercial activities of many smallholders, and the great contributions they make to domestic food supplies and exports. If the goal of reducing poverty is to be achieved, governments and donors must strengthen family farms and cut back on farm and export subsidies in rich countries.